Photo: SA Express - Edward Ornelas
- Troy Ballard
Tony Parker. Manu Ginobli. Tim Duncan.
There won't be many alley-oops in San Antonio. Nor will there be many flashy fast-break dunks. Don't count on any crowd-rising displays of pure athleticism. The chances of Terrell Owens-esque steals are between slim and none. There won't be any LeBron James, Dwyane Wade or Chris Bosh sightings.
The Spurs are the anti-Heat, and San Antonio is still the best team in the NBA.
Color me crazy -- but going into this postseason, despite having the best record in the West for the second consecutive year, I scoffed at the idea of San Antonio making any noise whatsoever. Not only was the team's best player in Duncan is approaching the age that he could be the father of most of the players he played against, but the Spurs are coming off getting bounced last year by a much younger Memphis Grizzlies team.
I was so wrong. So.. so.. blatantly wrong.
San Antonio got away with playing an inexperienced and young Utah Jazz team in the first-round, and naturally -- it ended in a sweep. The Spurs steam-rolled Utah.
Still, I wasn't impressed. Beating Utah wasn't that impressive. One seeds are supposed to beat eight seeds.
Flash-forward to now, and I'm still searching my garage for the dunce hat that I haven't had to pull out in three or more years. And even up until the second half of the Spurs vs. Clippers game, I was thinking smugly to myself, 'look at what we have here, the Spurs falling apart against a young and athletic LA team. It was only a matter of time.'
Again, still searching for that dunce hat.
The Spurs battled back from down 24 points against the Clippers (in Los Angeles, mind you), absolutely robbing Game Three and moving one step closer to the team's second consecutive sweep. Duncan, Ginobli, and Parker turned on that special something in the second half, and it led to a combined 55 points, 20 rebounds and 20 assists between the three.
That sort of production led to a mesmerizing and lopsided third quarter, where the Spurs outscored the Clippers 26-8. It's going to be that same production that is going to allow San Antonio to sweep Los Angeles just like Utah.
It's that veteran presence, that determination, those fundamentals on the floor that make the Spurs the best team in basketball. San Antonio doesn't need world-recognized superstars to be the best -- just depth and a gritty attitude.
Forget age. Forget the Heat. San Antonio is doing big things, and this writer is now totally sold on Tony Parker, Manu Ginobli and Tim Duncan.
